Thermal stamping formability of magnesium alloy sheet based on the Gurson model

Based on the Gurson damage model, the thermal stamping formability of AZ31 magnesium alloy sheet was predicted by employing finite element simulation and thermal stamping test. Taking the plastic anisotropic behavior of the AZ31 sheet into account, the Gurson damage model was implemented in the commercial finite element software ABAQUS/Explicit by using the user material subroutine VUMAT. Parameters employed in the Gurson damage model were determined through uniaxial tensile test and numerical iterative computation. The evolvement and distribution of micro voids in the AZ31 sheet during thermal stamping were simulated by using ABAQUS. The internal damage evolution due to micro void growth and coalescence developed at different temperatures in the AZ31 sheet was observed by scanning electron microscopy. The predicted micro void distribution agrees well with experimental data. Therefore, this result indicates that the presented approach can be employed to predict the thermal stamping formability of metal sheet.